Crossing paths: The illusionist and the former fake psych
by Little-Firestar84
Summary: Former world's leading illusionist Cameron Black has plan to confess his feelings to his handler, Special Agent Kay Daniels - and it involves hidden cards in her pockets, a candelight dinner and classic music. But, of course the guy from Austin - Cameron's idol - consulting on a fraud case would spoil all the fun - because meeting your myths never lives up to expectations.


"I can't believe that you would do that _to me_!" Kay lifted her eyes from her paperwork as soon as she heard Cameron's extremely disappointed voice, and stared at him, quizzically.

He didn't bother with an answer, though; he just walked into her office, with what looked like _a pout_ printed on his features, his arms crossed as to shield himself from her very presence.

Kay waited for some kind of explanation, but, when it never came and silence instead stood in its place, she asked directly. "And what exactly did I do to you?"

" _That_ is what you did to me." His lips in a thigh line, he indicated the small group of people gathered outside of Deakins' office – the woman herself, Alvarez and a brunette woman and a blonde man who weren't from the unit. "I can't believe that I had to find it out from _Mike_ of all people! Something juicy happens, you are supposed to call me!"

"Yeah, but," She chuckled, lifting a perfect an eyebrow. "This is not a case that involves the Deception group. It's just fraud, not something _juicy._ "

" _That man_ is involved? It has to be juicy, trust me!" Cameron was a second away from stomping around like a child, and he kept stealing glances at the blonde man talking with Deakins. Cameron looked like not the grown-up man he was supposed to be (not that he really liked to behave like an adult on any normal day), but like a teenager who had just been banned from going to the concert of some pop artist.

Sighing, Kay started looking at man who seemed to catch so much Cameron's attention. She was eyeing suspiciously, as she didn't get _why_ Cameron was so fascinated with him. "Cameron, I don't understand, what's so great about the people from the Austin office?"

" _The people from the Austin office?_ Kay, are you out of your mind? Do you have any idea who _that man_ is?" Cameron hissed, his eyes as huge as saucers, like he had just witnessed Kay committing some kind of atrocious crime – seriously, had he seen her kicking a puppy, he would have been less shocked.

"I know that he is from the Austin office and he is working a fraud case." She opened her arms, and spelled the whole sentence out like she was talking with a kid that also happened to be hard of hearing.

Cameron shook his head, rolling his head dramatically, and let himself fall on the chair in front of Kay's desk, like the realization that she _really_ didn't know who she was dealing with had caused him to lose all of his forces. "You really don't know who he is. But, don't you people, like, take information on everyone just looking at your building?"

She laughed – and her smile enlightened the room, and Cameron cleared his throat, as he felt himself _blushing_ like he was a teenager. "The Austin office vouched for him, that's enough for us. Apparently, he's been working with them for years. But why the interest?"

Cameron chuckled, tilting his head to the side a little. "I guess we can say we come from the same world, in a way. And I'm not saying that just because we both happen to be consultants for the FBI."

Kay narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms, suddenly curious. She hadn't been directly involved in this case – Deakins had wanted to see if Mike would have been able to fly solo – and gossip wasn't real her cup of tea, so she didn't really know the ins and outs of this investigation, nor the players involved. But, Cameron had stirred her curiosity, and now she wanted to know more – just a good FBI agent. "Oh?"

Cameron nodded. "We were both frequent attenders of the Vegas scene, a few years back. Of course, Johnny and I were both just teenagers at the time, and we never really pretended to be something we weren't…"

"You mean, besides pretending that you were the same person?" She chuckled, lifting again that perfect eyebrow- and Cameron hated how that sight stirred something in him he was still a little uncomfortable with.

He huffed, rolling his eyes, a little bit annoyed. Like he needed reminding of _that_. "Yeah, well, of course, if you take away the fact that there were two of us and only one of him, _I think_ we've got a lot of things in common."

"What's his story anyway?" She asked, looking at the man. His partner had, apparently, joined Deakins and Mike in their boss' office, but he was leaning against the doorframe, sipping some beverage from what looked like… _like a tiffany azure porcelain teacup_.

Yep. She could understand why Cameron seemed fascinated by the man. They were weird eggs. The both of them.

Cameron took a big breath, and suddenly did his best to appear serious – even if he looked like one the guys who used to narrate ghost stories in front of the camp fire back when she was a kid. "Back when he was a kid, his father built his show around his son…"

"Does the story ends with the world discovering he had a secret twin behind the scenes?" She asked, amused.

"Yeah, no, it wasn't that kind of show. He pretended to be a psychic. Basically, he was a con artist. Made a fortune out of it. I mean, I used to see pictures of his mansion. He was _filthy rich_. Not that there was anything good in getting rich by conning desperate and sick people, or that I was jealous, I'm just saying."

"So, what? The FBI… _debunked_ him? That's how he got to work with them?" Kay looked again at the man. He didn't look like the glamorous con-artist Cameron was describing. Yes, he was clean, but the suit was old and a little bigger, as he had lost weight and had never gotten around to replace it.

"Oh, no, it wasn't the FBI- a _serial killer_ did it." Kay stared at Cameron, eyes wide open, as in shock or disbelief. "Guy wanted to lift his profile and tried to insert himself in the investigation. When the Feds asked him to turn around and mind his own business, he tried to force their hands by doing a TV special. The killer didn't like it, and when our man there came back home, he found his wife and his daughter _slaughtered_ – kid was only, I don't know, five or six, I think?"

"That's awful…" Kay added, as it was an afterthought, her voice low. She felt a knot in her throat, and she felt… awful for the poor man. Losing her sister in the way she had was bad enough, but she couldn't even fathom the pain of finding your wife and your baby girl butchered, for something you've done. How had he kept his sanity?

Cameron nodded. "It took him a decade, but, at the end, he and the cops found out the killer's identity. Last thing I've heard, _our man here_ killed him in self-defense."

"You were talking about me:" Kay jumped – _literally_ – in her seat when she heard the unknown voice interrupting her conversation with Cameron. She stared, eyes wide open in shock, at the cheerful consultant of the Austin office, leaning against her office doorframe like he belong there, teacup still in hand. She was a little shocked- he had been so stealthy she hadn't noticed anyone approaching until he had made his presence known by speaking, full of himself, sure that he was the center of the discussion.

(Which, in truth, he was.)

Cameron? He looked like a kid overdosing on sugar. Or a puppy in need of attention.

The Austin consultant waltzed into her office, and, cup still in hand, he shook Kay's hand. "Agent Daniels, I presume? I've heard a lot of things about you from Agent Alvarez- all good, I assure you."

"Thank you very much, Mister…" Kay said, her voice a bit low, as she looked suspiciously, or at least weirded out, at the man strongly shaking her hand.

"Jane - _Patrick Jane_. I work as a consultant for the Austin office, but I think you are already aware of that. And you," Jane turned to look at Cameron, without letting it go of Kay's hand. "You must be Cameron Black. I went to one of your shows, once – nothing to write home about, mind you. Kind of saw the whole twin coming."

"Oh, really?" Cameron grunted, crossing his arms defensively, making Kay chuckle – apparently, meeting his "hero" hadn't lived to Cameron's expectations.

"Well, of course I'm the exception to any rule, so I know that nobody else saw that coming, but, well, I was really good at what I did. I still am, matter of fact." Jane beamed, filled to the brim with pride.

He had finally let it go of Kay's hand, and had abandoned the empty teacup on her desk. Hands in his pockets, he was bouncing on his heels, grinning mischievous. He had a strange light in his eyes – one that Kay didn't like – because it looked like he knew something and couldn't wait to open Pandora's box.

"Anyway, take consolation in knowing that you at least have _really_ great taste when it comes to women. Although I'm kind of biased here – I did marry my FBI handler, after all." Jane chuckled, shameless, and Kay swore that she saw Cameron's Adam's apple _jumping_ in his throat.

"I'm sorry, Mister Jane, but I don't understand…" She said, a little amused. Who was he talking about? And why was Cameron so nervous?

"Oh, you mean he hasn't told you yet?" Jane laughed, shaking his head and clapping his hands, before turning to Cameron, who seemed, all of a sudden, very interested in the ceiling. "Please, _please_ , tell me that you at least know that you are in love with her."

Kay just laughed her head off, so hard that her side started to hurt. But then, her eyes fell on Cameron, and she swallowed hard, and no sound left her throat. He was tense, his expression a mixture of pain, shame and rage, and he was…

He was blushing. Cameron Black was _actually blushing_. Like a teenager.

"You son of a…" Cameron hissed, and then turned toward Jane. Before anyone could see that coming, let alone _stop_ it, Jane was clenching a bloody nose, and Cameron was painfully shaking an hand that was already swelling, as red as a tomato.

" _Cameron_!" Kay screamed, covering her mouth as in shock. Of course she knew he could hit – but the only times she had seen him fight, was when he had to defend himself. Cameron had never attacked anyone before – especially not in the FBI building and not in front of her!

"Mister Jane, I'm so sorry!" She immediately joined him on the other side of her desk, offering the Austin consultant an handkerchief, and gnashing her teeth at Cameron, who was pouting like a kid and didn't look a little bit ashamed. If nothing else, he seemed disappointed that he had gotten only a bloody nose to his "enemy" and that his hand was still in pain. "Cameron! What the hell were you thinking!"

"What? You are made with _me_? What about _him_? I've been hiding cards in your pockets _for months_ , and it was all building up to the queen of hearts, when I would have told you that I love you in front of a chandelier dinner with good music and nice food and he went and ruined it all!"

Cameron was actually _ranting,_ and Kay, quizzically, wondered how much of it he actually _wanted_ to say and how much had just came out because he was mad and disappointed – a bit like when Mike explained his magic tricks while Cameron was still performing them.

"Jane, what do you think you are…. _**OH MY GOD, JANE!"**_ The brunette from the Austin office stared at Jane with eyes wide open, but she quickly regained her composure. She actually rearranged her blazer, clearing her throat, and with nonchalance, she took a small packet of instant ice from her pocket and, after having broken the inside bubble, she offered it to Jane without even meeting his eyes. The man was still clenching his bloody nose, but his mood had suddenly changed. Gone was the full-of-himself jerk she had met, and now he seemed more like a kid who had just disappointed his parents.

"Ma'am… whatever he did, I'm so, very sorry for my consultant's behavior. I can assure you that it will not happen again." Kay opened her mouth in shock. Her consultant was clenching his nose and she was asking _them_ for forgiveness? Kay was that close to look around for hidden cameras- it had to be an elaborate joke, right?

"Of course it's not gonna happen again! He stole my love declaration! What is he gonna do, uh? Steal my proposal, too?" Cameron blushed again, and turned to look at Kay, stuttering a little and looking apologetic. "Not that I want to propose. I mean, of course I want to propose. Just, not right away? Because we need to know each other first. Not that I don't know you, and you don't know me, because we do, but I mean as a couple. Not that we are one. Yet. Okay, you know what? I really don't know why I'm still talking, because I believe that I embarrassed myself enough."

"I'm so, so sorry." The handler sighed. From the look of things, she was barely containing her anger- Jane seemed to be in an hell of troubles.

"BUD TEREDA, HE BOK BY NOZ!" Jane tried to say, still clenching his nose, the words leaving his mouth almost uncompressible to the untrained ear.

The handler shook her head, and offered her hand to Kay, still looking like what had happened was somehow Jane's fault- or hers. "Special Agent Teresa Lisbon. I guess you've already met the idiot here – Patrick Jane."

"Yep. He introduced himself. Right before spoiling my love declaration to Kay." Cameron, crossed arms, pouted. "I'm Cameron Black, former world's greatest illusionist, and this is Special Agent Kay Daniels."

Lisbon chuckled. "Ah. A former fake psychic and a former illusionist. The FBI really knows how to choose their consultants, uh?" She joked. Then, she turned to face Jane, and looked at him in silence, as she was expecting him to open his mouth and just say something.

But, he never opened his mouth – it was instead Kay who spoke. "Agent Lisbon, I don't know what you think happened here, but Mister Jane is not at fault here. Mister Black attacked him and…"

But Lisbon lifted her hand, stopping Kay. "Agent Daniels, the reason I keep instant ice in my pockets? It's because he get a bloody nose at least once a week, and that's when we are lucky. He got punched? Trust me: he went looking for it. I mean, you know how he started working with me? Because he annoyed _so much_ one of my fellow agents that he got punched and promised my boss he would have sued us _for millions_ if we didn't give him access to our cases."

Pointing a finger in the injured man's direction Lisbon turned to look at Jane, who looked at least ashamed, if nothing else – even if Cameron had the impression he was acting for Lisbon's benefit. "And you. You do something like that again– or anything at all, and I swear that sleeping on the couch will be the last of your problems."

"But…"

But, before he could add anything to the single word, Lisbon – who, Cameron had understood, was the famous wife/handler - silenced him with her glare. "Jane, seriously, don't make it worse. I'm already mad with you because you _had_ to buy that hovel because it was oh so romantic the idea of renovating it on your own… and now I've been living in my boss' guest-room for three bloody years because it leans to the side and you are too proud to ask for any help! But you know what? First thing first when we get back in Austin? I'm calling a construction company! Why on Earth I thought you could be the man in our marriage, I have no idea…"

"But…" But, Lisbon glared again, and indicated the door, strongly suggesting that if he cared about his well-being (and still being married to her) he would just leave the room and pretend nothing of that ever happened.

"Again, I'm sorry. And… nice to have met you." She finished the sentence as she wasn't sure those were the words to say, to use – Kay guessed she was right, after all, there was no manual who said how to behave in such situations – and, clearing her voice, she left the room.

"Wow, did that really just happened?" Cameron asked, looking at the door as to have confirmation that it hadn't been just a dream- a nightmare, actually.

"Yes, Cameron, it just did." Kay lifted an eyebrow, crossed arms, joining her "consultant"/observer in front of her desk. "So, care to elaborate on the _elaborate card trick?"_

"Yeah, well…" He scratched the back of his head, sheepish. "As I said, you weren't supposed to find out like that. The declaration was still a few months away."

Kay looked at him, suddenly pained. If he knew how he felt, if he was sure of his feelings… why hid them, and play games? In her mind, there was only a possible answer: Cameron was buying himself time – to just escape his feelings, make sure that he could put this silly notion of love behind himself.

"That's'…" he shook his head, reading her thoughts. "I wasn't planning on not telling you. But, I wanted to make sure that you knew I wasn't going away – that I'm staying, that this is my place. I know how it hurt, when Johnny took my place and you thought I was gone and that I turned my back on you. I just… I wanted for you to know that it's just not happening. Just because we've put the whole MW business behind us and Johnny is free, I'm not leaving _you_."

Kay was speechless. She gasped as for air, trying to find the right words. But, she stood in silence, for she didn't think there was enough words – or the right ones- to answer Cameron, to tell him what she felt and just _how much_.

"Kay? You are supposed to say something?" He asked her, biting his lips and tapping with his right foot on the floor.

"Jonathan… he didn't tell you? What… what I told him when I left to go against MW on his own…"

"So you… are in love with Johnny? That's what you are trying to say?"

But Kay shook her head. "What? No! When he left… I thought it was you. And I told him…" She took a big breath. "I told _you_ that I wanted to be in your life… and not just like an FBI agent. Not just… like a friend."

This time, it was Cameron's time to be speechless- he just checked the time like it was normal and they had just been speaking about the weather, instead of having a world-altering conversation. "Cameron? Say something. You are starting to scare me."

"All right, listen…" he said matter-of-factly, in a take-charge matter. "I'm going back to the Archives, I'm preparing you the candlelight dinner you are supposed to get in this kind of situation, I'll select nice music and then I guess we will have our dinner."

Kay blushed, smiling, and nodded. "Sounds like a date."

"Yeah. Because it was supposed to be one. Before Mister Jane ruined it all."

"Did he really?" She asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Cameron blushed, and lowered his eyes. "Yeah. I guess you are right."

He left the room, walking backwards as long as he could, so that he didn't have to stop looking at Kay, and her smile and the happiness radiating from her eyes. She had always been beautiful, but this? She was even more perfect in his eyes right now.

She was everything he had always wanted and needed, without being aware of it.

And… and she wanted him. _Him._ Despite everything that happened… she still wanted _him_.

She had _always_ wanted him. And Johnny _knew_. And he had kept it from _him_ \- _his own twin brother_.

"Ah, Johnny, there's gonna be hell to pay for this. But first… where could I get the best Crème brûlée of the city __at this time of the day?"


End file.
